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The Signal Code is the result of a six month study by the Signal Program on Human Security and Technology at the Harvard Humanitarian Initiative (HHI) at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health to...

In many of today’s frontline humanitarian environments, access is increasingly difficult to obtain and maintain, and continued engagement with non-state armed actors is an integral aspect of ensuring assistance and protection activities and advocating for compliance with international legal...

Data are a central component of humanitarian response. Frequently, however, there is a disconnect between data, decision-making and response. Informed decisions need to be made in the first hours and days of an emergency, and if the...

The KoBoToolbox Question Library enables users to create, store, share and re-use validated questions across surveys. This speeds up the process of creating new forms and contributes to the standardization of survey questions.

The Humanitarian Needs Assessment E-learning program is designed to provide an overview of the Humanitarian Needs Assessment process. The process can look very different depending on the scale of a disaster, the role of humanitarian organizations involved and the resources available to any...

The Building a Better Response e-learning course provides users with a comprehensive and practical introduction to engaging with the international humanitarian architecture. The e-learning component is publicly accessible free of charge.

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Since 1988, more than 2.5 billion children have been immunized against polio through programs in more than 200 countries involving some 20 million volunteers and an international investment of over US$8 billion. By 2006, polio cases around the world had decreased by over 99% and remained endemic...

Opportunities for youth can be severely limited among many communities in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region that are disrupted by conflict or impoverishment. Recent political and economic factors, as well as a rapidly growing youth population, have greatly increased the...

Unit 1.2 of ATHA's International Humanitarian Law Distance Learning Module Series presents An overview and discussion of the key principles of IHL – distinction, proportionality, military necessity, precaution and the reduction of superfluous injury and unnecessary harm – as well as the...

Unit 1.3 of ATHA's International Humanitarian Law Distance Learning Series examines IHL implementation and enforcement mechanisms, transitional justice, and the challenges of humanitarian engagement with the implementation and enforcement of IHL.

Unit 1.1 of ATHA's International Humanitarian Law DIstance Learning Series explores the primary sources, development, and scope of application of IHL. Also covers the qualification of armed conflict and the interplay between IHL and international human rights law (IHRL).

Climate change and environmental degradation are increasingly becoming a humanitarian issue. Variability in climate, as well as in increased frequency and intensity of extreme weather events, is disrupting livelihoods, driving displacement, and contributing to conflicts over increasingly...

The mandate interpretation process is crucial to the implementation of fact-finding missions geared toward investigating alleged violations of international law, including human rights, international criminal law, and international humanitarian law. However, many disagreements exist about...

The mandate interpretation process is crucial to the implementation of fact-finding missions geared toward investigating alleged violations of international law, including human rights, international criminal law, and international humanitarian law. However, many disagreements exist about...

Over the past few decades, governments have established various international criminal courts and tribunals (ICCTs), including several ad hoc entities — such as the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) and the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) —...

What role does gender play in humanitarian crises? How could a gendered lens improve humanitarian practitioners’ approaches to designing and implementing assistance and protection programs in complex environments? A gendered perspective of humanitarian protection focuses on analyzing the...

Recent high-profile attacks on humanitarian professionals in Syria and Iraq call attention to a disturbing trend: humanitarian agencies face growing threats and attacks on their staff. These attacks endanger their lives, violate international humanitarian law, and jeopardize the effective...

This article documents the development and initial use case of the GRID (Ground Reporting through Imagery Delivery) methodology by the Harvard Humanitarian Initiative (HHI). GRID was created to support corroboration of witness testimony of mass atrocity related-events using satellite...

The aim of this article is to highlight potential methods applicable to a standard forensic approach for the analysis of high-resolution satellite imagery that may contain evidence of alleged mass atrocities. The primary method employed is the retrospective analysis of a case study involving the...

On World Refugee Day this year, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees reported that the number of refugees, asylum-seekers, and internally displaced people worldwide has exceeded 50 million people. Humanitarian organizations are currently struggling to address the needs of these displaced...

Two dominant narratives have characterized the conflict in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC): (1) the horrific abuse of women through sexual violence and (2) the use of “conflict minerals” to fuel the fighting. These two advocacy narratives intersect uniquely in artisanal and...

It is estimated that half of the world’s population currently resides in urban areas, and this number is expected to rise to 5 billion by 2030, with the largest cities emerging in Africa and Asia. Rapid urbanization has led to increased density, overcrowding, and strain on local...

The decades-long conflict in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has resulted in major changes to local economies, strained social networks and insecurity. This environment forces many to pursue unconventional and, at times, socially stigmatised avenues for income. This paper...

This paper examines follow-up measures that have been undertaken in the wake of reports published by monitoring, reporting, and fact-finding missions tasked to investigate alleged violations of international humanitarian law and human rights. Section 1 explores the perspectives of both MRF...

This report presents the results of a mixed-methods study conducted in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, to assess the population’s perceptions, knowledge, and attitudes about security and justice. The study included a survey of 1,000 randomly selected adult residents, to provide results that are...

This report presents the results of a mixed-methods study conducted in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) between November and December 2013, to assess the population’s perceptions, knowledge, and attitudes about peace, security and justice. The study included a survey of 5,166...

This working paper examines how monitoring, reporting, and fact-finding (MRF) missions have responded to challenges regarding public communication and report drafting. Overall, the paper aims to present a portrait of the views and practices of the MRF community — as well as the...

This working paper examines how monitoring, reporting, and fact-finding (MRF) missions have responded to challenges regarding public communication and report drafting. Overall, the paper aims to present a portrait of the views and practices of the MRF community — as well as the...